Commentary on Radio & Audio

January 06, 2012

My Annual Christmas Message To Radio

In The E-Myth, author Michael Gerber suggests that most of us get into a business because we love a craft. Yet we end up doing something other than what we intended to do. For instance, an auto mechanic starts his own business because he loves to work on cars. As the business grows, he spends all his time working in the office on administrative duties and managing people and customers, and no time working on cars. He finds himself miserable because he is not focused on the craft he loved.

A Radio Love AffairIn 1969, I fell in love with radio. I already loved radio as a listener, but it was 1969 when I got my first airshift, on WITB in Fort Wayne, IN. My love affair with this medium began because I was able to entertain, play music I loved, and, in my own little way, be a local celebrity. That job led me to WYYY/Kalamazoo, MI, then to the original airstaff of Y-100 in Miami with John Rook and Bill Tanner, on to 96X/Miami with Jerry Clifton and WQAM with Tom Birch, and then into a career as a radio programmer, and a consultant with a couple of dozen stations simultaneously. It was at that stage that I started to become a manager instead of an air personality or programmer. But it was not until I got into station ownership that I completely moved away from the day-to-day craft I loved so much. Though I was able to influence programming, talent, and promotions, I was also involved in administrative things that were not as much fun for me. Over time, I acquired more stations, and then sold everything. Then I started additional businesses and evolved to where I am today, which involves a whole lot of management and very little craft.

Revisiting The Original PremiseYesterday, while writing a piece about Pandora and how radio needs to embrace change, I started thinking about my original premise. Why did I get into radio? What was it I loved? What stations and companies are making the kind of radio I love, and which have lost that magic? I had to stop and ask myself if it's time for me to move on. Am I focused on my original premise, a decision I made at the age of 14? Is my entire career based on a decision I made in adolescence, when I was enamored of shiny objects? Is it time for me to get back to my craft? Am I finding satisfaction in what I do?

Geeks And GeezersI try to surround myself with two levels of mentors, whom I refer to as Geeks and Geezers. I can learn from both. Geezers have deep experience, and Geeks have passion and ideas. The 20- and 30-year-olds who work for me are a continual reminder of what I once had and how I must return to that naive passion I had for the craft. The Geezers provide me with wisdom and practicality and are a reminder that one day I'll be a Geezer, wishing for these times when I can still make an impact.

I tell the Geezers to stop telling themselves they are old and tired and remind them they have great wisdom with which to keep going. Some have given up, but others are passionate and full of drive. It's a decision. I'm reminded that Winston Churchill was never successful until he was almost 70. His words "Never, ever give up" inspire me. People without purpose tend to wither away.

I tell the Geeks that time travel is something they will experience in their lives. One minute you're 25 and the next minute you're 50, and you wonder how it happened so fast.

Making Use Of The HolidayAt this moment most of you are either leaving or about to leave for time off. I look forward to this time not only because I can sleep in a little, spend time with family, attack some things I have been hoping to get done around the house, tinker on mindless projects, but most importantly, so I can hop off the merry-go-round in a rare moment of no office or travel time, no pressure, no problem-solving, and I can just stop and think. It only comes once a year, and it's valuable "me time" to ask myself if I'm on track, if I am working toward crushing my life goals or just focusing on meaningless busy work.

This year I'm using my time to ponder my original premise. Am I doing something I no longer want to do? Can I do things differently? What should I do differently? What parts of my life do I want to change? This is a time when you too should ponder your original premises.

Pondering RadioThis time is a chance to ponder radio. Use some of this time to ask yourself about the original premise: Why did you get into radio? What turned you on? Were you like a drifting boat -- did you just happen to land where you are today? Is that where you really want to be?

Exciting TimesThis is the most challenging and the most exciting time I've seen for radio in my career. Challenging because it's changed, it's being attacked by new, viable competitors driven by technology, and because many are suffering internal strife. Some feel trapped, some are not having fun anymore, some liked things better the way they used to be, and some want to see more localism, more creativity, more on-air talent. Exciting because there are new opportunities in digital, because Pandora is making huge headway and that says there is a strong digital radio future we too should be a part of; exciting because of new leadership at Clear Channel who might help radio out of its "the way things have always been done" traps; exciting because there is much work to be done.

Are You In The Game?As you ponder, you need to ask yourself if you're spending most of your life in a business you still love and if you like its direction. If the answer is no, you need to make your number one goal getting out or changing your mindset. If you're telling yourself you'll bite the bullet and fake it for a few more years until you retire, you're not in the game. Belief from every soldier, every leader, is critical to winning wars, and if your head is not in the game, you're hurting the game.

Are You Clinging To The Past?You also need to ponder whether you're clinging to the past. Are you open to new directions for radio? Are you willing to accept that it's not ever going to return to the way things used to be? Are you willing to accept that there are new realities we need to accept and embrace -- realities that will challenge us, and could hurt us?

Are You Committed To Learning? If your quiet time leads you to a decision to remain committed to radio, then your next commitment should be to learn everything you can about the new world we live in. Rather than following your routines, you need to get away from your desk to learn from the market, from the advertisers, from the new digital alternatives, and you need to learn about the digital future you should be living now. Commit to reading a book a month. Commit to reading more tech blogs and digital media blogs. Commit to forcing yourself out of your comfort zone. Commit to learning things that make you uncomfortable. Do anything to stretch your brain. It doesn't have to be business-related. Commit to invest in understanding what is happening around you, even if your company won't fund it. You're not employable if you don't understand what's happening in the digital world around you. It's a monster that few in radio understand or believe in.

The Speed Of ChangeThe media world is moving at the speed of light. Transformation is taking place, and a majority of radio soldiers are so focused on the day-to-day goals that they don't have a clue how much impact these changes will have on them. While they think they can catch up once the changes have a direct effect on their lives, they may never be able to do that once those with a leadership attitude have passed them by in the fast lane. You will never keep up unless you're fully engaged now. This change is monumental, but it's still being ignored by much of radio.

Commit To EngagementDuring the holiday break, take some time to ponder your life, your original premises, and your level of commitment to radio. Based on your decisions, you should either move out or engage fully. Full engagement is not status quo. It's aggressive learning, acceptance of change, and the assassination of sacred cows. It requires letting go of the past, no whining about the way things used to be, and attacking your role in new ways.

A 20-Year JourneyIn 2012 I'll have been at the helm of Radio Ink for 20 years. Though I'm committed to radio deeply and am still in love with and passionate about it, I have also found myself doing things that others can do more effectively. It's why I asked former ABC Radio Networks President Jim Robinson to come to my company, Streamline, as CEO. I've run the operations long enough, repeated the same mistakes too many times, and it's time someone else has a chance to make better decisions and helps us crush our growth goals. It's also why Tom Elmo was elevated to Chief Operating Officer and Deborah Parenti promoted to Executive Vice President/Radio. I'm tired of living the definition of insanity.

Am I Committed? Though I'll ponder more deeply this holiday, I've spent a lot of time recently asking myself if I was a committed soldier or if I was clinging to the past. I had to ask if this 20-year mark was time for me to leave radio. I've pondered my commitment to radio and decided I am in for the long haul. As long as I feel I'm growing and providing a valuable service, and as long as I believe I'm able to stimulate new thinking, challenge our industry, and ultimately hope to make a difference, I'll stay in the game.

I've realized that I can't do that as well when I'm focusing on managing a growing company, with many divisions in and outside of radio. This new structure allows me to get back to my craft, to focus on growth and industry vision, and take a more active role in this industry I deeply love.

Committed To UbiquityI'm committed to radio, but don't think for a minute I consider only terrestrial radio part of that commitment. That would be like AT&T being committed to landlines but not mobile phones and beyond. Radio needs to be ubiquitous. The magic of radio, as I see it, is its ability to make the lives of listeners better by entertaining them, by making them laugh, informing them, helping them get involved in their communities, being there to serve in disaster, and being the soundtrack of their lives in the home, in the car, on the smartphone, and wherever they need us to be. I've watched radio turn small mom-and-pop local businesses into giant national corporations. Our advertising can change the lives of business owners. It's powerful and effective when done properly. Therefore we should be committed to every possible means of distribution to accomplish these goals. Terrestrial is just one option. My job is to help you focus on the big picture, keep a grand vision, to show you the possibilities, the land mines, and the opportunities. But you need to embrace change, opportunity, and getting outside of your comfort zone.

Deserving MoreI've always been a little embarrassed by radio because I have always believed we deserve more than the 7 percent crumbs we always seem to get. We're better than that. We should be getting more, and for the first time ever I feel we have the leadership in this industry that can get us there. These are truly exciting times. You deserve more too. Rather than defending our past and clinging to our transmitters alone, you deserve to be part of the multibillion-dollar digital market, the pureplay market, the flash sales market, and more. Radio companies, local radio broadcasters, can leverage their reach, their communities, to become so much more and command much bigger revenues.

Sincere ThanksAs I enter year 20 of owning Radio Ink, I want to thank you for your commitment to radio, which has kept me engaged and invigorated. Your subscriptions and advertising have not only afforded me the opportunity to continue to offer radio fresh perspectives and new ideas, they have provided me with deep, lifelong friendships across America and more than 40 countries. There is something special about knowing I can walk into almost any radio station in the world and find a friend. I'm looking forward to the next 20 years. Retirement isn't on my radar. There is too much to accomplish and too much great radio to do.

I truly wish you a blessed, family-filled holiday, whether Christmas or Chanukah, and I encourage you to find time to look inward and re-commit yourself to the right direction for your valuable life. Time travels too fast to be doing something you don't love.

Merry Christmas from the Rhoads family, and thank you for allowing me to do what I love.

Comments

Many of us have similar childhood commencement experiences in broadcasting.
The sights,sounds and smells of those old radio stations coupled with their local involvement made the feelings unforgettable. People did not leave radio. Radio left people. No training,ownership and community programming standards becoming obsolete. The once live-local moved it's tent to the big city big top and the rest is history.

But I appeal to those childhood emotions. Take a subjective listening test on a used car lot somewhere in South Florida and compare the quality of a 1990s car radio to anything after 2003 and notice the difference in AM-FM quality degeneration in later years. Give credit where credit is due. Car-markers took the bait from the digital bunch and the new chipsets have made AM-FM bland. Its all because the new noise kits cut coverage contours,have built in filters to protect the on-board options that normally would wipe out the AM-FM expected contours. People don't know why. They just don't receive their former favorite stations any longer thanks to the new chips. This is the dirty aspect of modern failing technology-a major loss of contours and severe AM and FM self-induced interference.And the real bad guys are the pro-HiDef supporters who gave the blind nod to more digital radios at any cost. BTW, you can now ask almost any hands-on radio tech and they will privately tell the truth.
Happy New Year, Too!

My love for radio is that it offered entertainment OTHER than music. I was able to agree, disagree and learn from what was being exchanged. I fell in love with the CONTENT radio supplied. I still love the few radio stations that provide content but music stations are a dime a dozen. They are background to me. Unless I find a radio station that believes in CONTENT then many will find another medium that will supply just that. Happy New Year and the very best to all in 2012.